Suck it up and act divine!
by Inyoface
Summary: AU Max is a little rough around the edges. Ray is the son of a cop. Upon repeatedly getting into trouble with the law, Max is sent to live with his strict mother. At his new school, he forms an unexpected friendship with Ray, who is completely unaware of his past. yaoi
1. Prologue

**Hello folks. Those of you who might have read other stories of mine might know that I've been having quite a writers block this past year. This here is a story that has been in my mind for a while now. I figured I should give it a try. A fresh start, that might even animate me to continue my old fics soon.**

**The original title was supposed to be '****Kiss ass and act divine'****, which is what Max will be doing a lot of later on. I had to censor it though.**

**Warning: There will be a bit of slash, although nothing to major. Not between Max and Ray though. I wont reveal it yet, but no worries, it's not a too weird pairing either. Also, this story takes place in Frankfurt, Germany. I figured I should spice up the usual occasion. I'll try my best to make it as culturally accurate as possible. **

**Happy reading!**

**- x -**

Max was a nice kid actually. Sure, he did have poorly dyed blond, or rather yellow hair and dressed in cheap clothes (usually from the second hand shop down the road) but that didn't mean he was on drugs or anything like that. He knew when to raise his voice and when to get more aggressive but everyone growing up in his neighbourhood would learn that at some point in their lives. It was necessary. Imagine being followed, by some random street thug. Typical creeper that makes you shiver just thinking about it. Well that kind of creeper wouldn't go away if you'd ask him politely. No, there would be a need for a direct and straight forward approach. Offence is the best defence after all. Max rarely got in trouble. Him and his friends would shoplift close to the end of the month, when they were running out of money, but only from major chains. Yes, he had been caught once, and it had not left a pretty mark on his criminal record. And he'd been caught taking the train without a ticket twice. Those tickets were way too expensive anyways. He didn't drink, -not much at least, and okay he did smoke, but only a few cigs a day. A guy should be allowed to have some flaw, shouldn't he? Nobody is perfect, after all (and don't say your name is 'nobody', that still wont work). So the thing is, even though he might look a bit rough around the edges, Max was a nice guy. The people in his neighbourhood would even refer to him as some sort of 'sweetheart'. He was very polite, always greeting his elders in the streets. He was the type that his peers could easily take advantage of, but luckily he had a best mate, Alan, preventing that from happening. He had been his best friend ever since Max first moved to the area, which was at the age of about 5. Now he was 16, so it had been over 10 years. He lived with his Dad in an old apartment building with an elevator that had been broken since sometime in the early nineties, The owner still hadn't bothered to get fixed. Max was currently unemployed, but he had sent out his job applications. Well, it hadn't been all that long since he graduated year 10 anyways. Only a month. He figured he'd just go back to school, if he wouldn't find a job until the start of the new school year. Employers did favour those who had at least started their senior years of high school. Not like he planned on continuing it for long though. School wasn't really his thing. He wasn't exactly ambitious. He was relatively content with what he had. He had never been the type to utter grand or unrealistic wishes. And he wasn't exactly picky either.

Anyways, there had been a whole lot of matters and circumstances occurring, that lead to the fact that Max Mizuhara was now standing in the courtroom, as a convict, accused and certainly guilty of Assault and Battery.

Him and Alan were trialled together. They had both confessed. No point in denying anyways. They had already made their statements and were now waiting for the judge to return to read their verdict. There was an unnerving atmosphere in the court room. Neither Alan nor Max said anything. Alan, somewhat bored, rested his chin in the palm of his hand, his elbow angled on the desk. Max, rather anxious, was biting his nails.

The judge re-entered the courtroom and everyone arose from their chairs. including Max and Alan. Max sent Alan one last worried look. His friend appeared to be calmer than he was, but Max had known him for long enough. He knew Alan was good at hiding this kind of stuff.

'The court has come to a verdict in the case of Alan Harris and Maxwell Mizuhara vs. the City of Frankfurt.'

So this was it then, Max thought. What was the worst thing that would happen to him? Community service. That wasn't that bad! Still, Max couldn't help but feeling nervous.

The judge proceeded in alphabetical order. Alan was first.

'Alan Samuel Harris, born February 15th 1995, aged seventeen, you have been found guilty for the crime of Assault and Battery, occurring on May 9th 2012, herby I sentence you to 110 hours of Community Service.'

Alan just gave the judge a cocky grin and sat back down. It was Max's turn now. He flinched when he heard his name being called.

'Maxwell Logan Mizuhara, born October 1995, aged sixteen, you are found guilty for the crime of Assault and Battery, occurring May 9th 2010, and by the juvenile offence law, I sentence you to 95 hours of Community Service. Case dismissed.'

People were starting to pack up. Their lawyer turned towards them. He was a state employed legal aid. But otherwise, still your typical slime bag, just like any other lawyer.

'A pretty average result.' He announced contently. 'I will mail you the contact details of your parole officer, and he will let you know when and where you'll be starting your community service.' He stretched out his hand. 'Good luck to you sirs.'

Alan gave him a rather tight handshake. Max not so much. He was still in shock from what had happened. He was a convict now. Officially. And there was also that guilt over him having a looser sentence than his friend did.

Alan put his arm around his shoulder once the lawyer left. 'It wasn't too bad, was it? I expected it to be scarier. It didn't even take that long.'

Max shrugged. 'I guess. Not really fair that I got off better than you, though. You're not that much older.' he muttered.

Alan ruffled his hair. 'It's cool, man. No harsh feelings.' He then proceeded to drag Max out of the courtroom. 'Come on, let's get out of here, I can't stand being in this place any longer. Maybe we could grab a beer or something.'

Max smiled, for the first time since entering the Court building two hours prior. 'Actually, that does sound good.'

But his newfound happiness was short lived.

'Max what are you doing? Where do you think you're going?' that was Max' mother calling. She was a very elegant lady, with her blonde hair up in a twisted bun and her blouse tucked into her skirt.

'Oh, Hey Mom.' Max replied blushing. He had never been good at conversing with his mother. She was intimidating. 'The case is over, we can leave.' he timidly explained.

He hadn't really expected his mother to show up for his court date in the first place, in fact, he had hoped she wouldn't. Preferably he would not want her to know about it at all. His mother had that talent to make awkward things even more awkward. And nothing, Max was sure, could be more awkward than confessing to a crime in front of ones parents. He had never quite been an honest kid, to be frank. Sure, he had been a nice kid and all, but he had soon observed the profits of lying. Lying made life easier. Nobody would get hurt. Hence it didn't happen often that young Max would man up and confess to finishing up all the yogurt, or secretly watching TV while his parents were still at work. And those habits from his childhood didn't just die. In fact, it had gotten worse. Not only did he lie more frequently, he now also planned ahead. He would use lying prophylactically, just in case, to avoid later awkwardness.

Judy Tate glanced down at her expensive watch. 'The case was supposed to begin at four.'

'There was something with another case, the charges were dropped or something, so they moved us in half an hour early.'

Judy Tate checked her watch again. Not like it would make any difference now. She had missed her only sons court date. So far it was his only court date too, and she hoped it would stay that way. Well, Judy Tate had a plan, she would reveal it later on, but for now it was important to get Max to come with her.

'Come, get in the car.'

Max nodded shyly. Sure, he would prefer to go with Alan, but he had committed a major crime after all. It would be better to play the obedient son for a while. At least until she had gotten a bit more used to the fact. He briefly waved his friend good bye and then took off with his mother. She would walk in a confident, upright gait, her heels clacking on the tile floor, with a rather nervous Max slurring behind her. They didn't talk until they reached the car, and even after they sat down inside, there was a moment of intimidating silence. Judy was the first one to say anything.

'Congratulations, you're a real criminal now, Max.' she scorned him.

Max sunk his head and looked out of the window to avoid her angry stare. 'I'm sorry.' he muttered.

'Oh you better be.'

'I am.' Max insisted. He looked up at her pleadingly. 'I mean it.'

'Well sorry doesn't exactly make it undone.'

Max didn't reply to that. What was there to reply anyways?

Judy sighed. and shook her head 'Never would I have believed that I would be the mother of one of those criminals.

'Mom!' Max cried out in protest.

'You can't exactly deny it.'

Max nodded. He knew she was right, it still didn't feel that good to hear it, though.

'I shouldn't have allowed you to stay with that good-for-nothing ex-husband of mine. Let the kids choose, that way they'll be happier, oh bullshit!'

'This isn't Dad's fault.' He insisted.

'Oh yes it is. Had you stayed with me, you would have gone to nice private schools and had polite, intelligent friends from good families, not this ghetto scum.'

'They're not ghetto scum. Alan is my best friend.'

Max knew that it would involve quite some effort to convince his judgemental mother that his 'partner in crime' was not a bad person. As expected, his protests didn't impress Judy.

'I'm going to have some serious talk with your father over the next few days, concerning your upbringing and the people you associate with.'

'Mom you don't even know them!'

'I've seen enough of them to make an adequate judgement.'

Max figured it was best, to maybe just go with it. His mother had every right to be angry after all. So he nodded in defeat and straightened out the creases in his dress shirt with his hands. A pointless attempt of making himself seem a little more 'proper' in this situation. It was a suit he had borrowed from his father. He wasn't quite as tall and muscular as him, so the suit was hanging sloppily of his scrawny body. It looked pathetic on him. Just as pathetic as he felt in that moment.

Judy continued to yell at him during the entire trip. And he knew she wouldn't stop once they got home. Maybe after his Dad would return home from work. But that was still two long hours away.

- x -

Ray Kon was possibly every father's far-fetched, dreamy example of a perfect son-in-law. He attended a fancy private school, with an exquisite German Literature department and a somewhat mediocre array of other departments. He was smart, but not smart enough to be cocky or geeky. His appearance was always clean, with a well trimmed hair cut and high-quality brand clothes. He possessed rather well developed skills in the sports typically played and enjoyed by the local country club community, meaning golf, tennis and polo. His nickname, Ray, was short for a name he despised but nonetheless sounded classy and sophisticated. He was the oldest child and only son of a well-respected upper-middle class family, -from the good part of the town. His cultural background was diverse but not too unconventional, conveniently making his physical appearance not too exotic. His speech was always polished and tasteful, his manners perfect and his record flawless.

All in all, to summon it up, he was one hell of a boring guy!

There could not possibly be a way that a pubescent boy could be this dull, or could there? A guy his age had hormones after all, right? Well, as a matter of fact, young Ray wasn't all perfect, but he kept that to himself, together with all his other desires, that might negatively alter his reputation. His twin sister however, was not at all that subtle. Mariah had always been a rather strong, but narrow minded girl. Spoiled on may say, used to getting her way. But she actually wasn't that bad, the way she was. Unlike Ray, who would obediently bow under the pressures induced by their parents, Mariah would rebel. And that played a very important role in the tale of Ray Kon's teenage life. She was like a constant reminder of his very own failure. Ray was unable to express himself, he was too scared of the reactions. It involved minor things, like parting his hair on the other side or wearing any bright colours. He did however relish his brief moments of rebellion, for example when eat Nutella with a spoon or when he'd wear a bandana (only inside the house of course, and when his father wasn't around). There was something about that hairstyle that he really enjoyed. Maybe it was the fact that it made him look 'wilder', that would explain his other secret fancy: growing his hair out. Of course, that was just another empty day dream of his, he knew that he'd never have the courage to actually do so.

So this rather perfect but uninteresting boy was currently walking back from the shops. He was carrying a brown paper bag from the local Deli, that, unlike for most boys his age, did not contain alcohol but instead: salmon tartar, Chèvre cheese imported from France and a jar of sun dried tomatoes. His parents were quite fond of the Mediterranean cuisine, partially because of it's delicate and exquisite flavours, but mostly because of it's rather elevated cost. Yes, the Kons loved everything high-class and expensive. It repeatedly reminded them of their wealth and status. So anyways, young Ray was walking home through the dreary rain. It wasn't raining very much, it was more of a rhythmic, dull drizzle, but combined with the gloomy, grey sky it did it's job at putting him in a melancholy mood. The rain flushed down the sides of the road in a constant stream, it had an almost hypnotic effect on Ray, as he couldn't keep his eyes off it as he dreamt of a better future. Maybe you suspected it already: yes, Ray Kon was somewhat upset with the direction his life was heading. And nobody knew. Mariah had noticed the signs, but never actually added them all together, and his parents were blissfully ignorant of anything going on. Ray was left to deal with it alone, and he dealt with it by sulking in self-pity and regret. What kind of regret? The most nerve wrecking one of them all: what if…

Ray had never been the one to take chances, and it was wearing him out. Sometimes he did wish, that he wasn't all that boring. There was a field in between his neighbourhood and where he stood now. If he'd cut through the field, it would take him maybe 5 minutes to get home, if he stayed on the road and went path _around_ the field, it would take him 10 minutes. As always, Ray choose the longer path. He was too scared that anyone might see him. He himself however, did indeed see someone cutting through the field. It was Kai Hiwatari, a classmate of his. Known to Ray to be cocky, rebellious and generally a bad person. He usually wore clothes that had gone out of fashion for many years, and usually stuff that didn't fit the season either. He would wear scarves in summer, and short sleeved shirts in winter (underneath his heavy coat of course). _His hair had gotten even longer_, Ray thought in a way that he believed was condescending (though in reality, there was a tinge of jealousy hiding behind his pride and satisfaction). He had known Kai all his life. Their parents were tight.

Ray decided to do something he did rather frequently, he hid behind a bush and spied at Kai. Sure, it was _extremely_ pathetic, but Ray was just too nosy for his own good. Kai was coming closer, so Ray decided to move a bit more towards the shrubs. Suddenly his left hand touched something gooey. He thought it was mud at first but upon further inspection…

'Ewww!'

He jumped up in disgust. 'Eww, eww, eww.'

He ripped some leaves of a bush and used it to wipe the dog poop off his hand. This was so disgusting! And smelly as well. Ray couldn't believe it. Why did this kind of stuff always happen to him. And why _him_ of all the people. Always him.

'What the hell is up with you Kon?'

That was Kai's voice. Oh bagga, he had noticed him. Ray froze and slowly turned around to face Kai. Hopefully he wouldn't add two and two together and realise what he had been up to.

'Um, hi there…'

'Is that dog poop?' Kai asked with disgust.

'Um, yea…'

'Nasty. How did you get it on your hand?'

Ray was hastily searching for words. He had never been a good conversationalist. 'Sitting… I was sitting, you see.'

Against Ray's hopes and pleas, Kai was being surprisingly sharp in this situation and he managed to draw the correct conclusion: 'Were you spying on me?'

Of course Ray denied. 'What? No, I have a life you know.'

Luckily Kai didn't know he was lying. Or so Ray hoped.

'Well, what were you doing here then?'

'Thinking and so. Just stuff that's none of your business, alright?'

Kai shrugged and reached into his pockets. He got out a pack of paper towels. He plucked out the already used ones and stuffed them into his jeans pockets before handing Ray the package.

'I had a cold earlier this week.' he explained. He shrugged again. 'But here, better than nothing.'

It was kinda gross, but Ray thankfully accepted it, even though he was careful not to touch the top sheet that had been in contact with the used ones.

Kai watched him do it but didn't comment on it. '_He probably thinks that I cannot handle the germs_' Ray thought. For some reason he felt ashamed of just that. '_How embarrassing, after all, I'm the one with the shit on his hands.'_

He considered reaching for the top paper towel after all but as he looked up to check if Kai was still watching he realised, he had already walked off. _'He probably doesn't even care, he has a life.'_

_Ray sighted. 'Why do I even care?' he muttered._

_The last few words he said so quietly, he himself had issues hearing them. Oh well, it didn't matter, it was him thinking them after all._

_- x - _

_Ray returned home to a very usual, and increasingly frequent scene. His sister had gotten into get another fight with their father. Something about the clothes she was wearing. Ray didn't bother staying around for long. He placed the groceries in the fridge then went up to his room. He shared it with Mariah, but she was out most of the time anyways. He didn't know what she did. She had stopped telling him. She probably didn't trust him anymore. Ray went to his bookshelf and pulled out a novel. He enjoyed reading. It was the only thing that made him happy lately. His father had noticed his passion for it and promptly decided for him to 'at least learn something from it', so for the past few years Ray was 'encouraged' to read mostly non-fiction books. It did open up new horizons and gave him insights into topics he wouldn't normally learn in detail about. Still, kept safely under his mattress was his all-time favourite fiction novel. One his father didn't even want him to own. 'The catcher in the Rye'. He too felt like the main character, Holden, sometimes. A loner who didn't fit in anywhere. _


	2. Lot's of fighting

**AquilaTempestas and Iluvbeyblade, thank you very much for reviewing :) that will encourage me to update faster I hope. This chapter is one of those 'a little boring but necessary to move the plot along' chapters. I hope you'll all still enjoy it.**

**Some skinny on the German school system:**

**Hauptschule – 9 years of school**

**Realschule, which gives a diploma called _Mittlere Reife_ – 10 years of school (what Max has). If someone wants to go to University they have to continue school for 3 more years, to pass the _Abitur_, before they can apply, so 13 in total.**

x -

Lot's of fighting

'Why do you always read such depressing books? ' Mariah asked.

'Because they're good.' Ray replied.

'That one...' she said, pointing at Ray's copy of 'The Lord of the Flies' '… we read in English. And it boring.'

'I liked it. It's a classic'

Mariah laughed. 'So what? That doesn't make it interesting.'

'No, but usually if people bothered remembering it, there was something worthy about it.'

She shook her head. 'I remember you used to read all those adventure books? The sci fi and fantasy ones, and you couldn't stop reading. I had to force you to come down for dinner. And you would get up early in the morning to read a couple of chapters before school started. And ever since you got into those snobby classics, you don't even care if you're interrupted.'

Like right now.

Ray was proud of his library, even if it was mostly hidden under his bed. Kafka's 'The metamorphosis', 'Grapes of Wrath', 'The great Gatsby', 'Slaughter House 5', 'Fahrenheit 451'. To list a few. They were mainly classics. And boring as Mariah called them. He had to admit, it usually took him until about halfway through, for those classics became thrilling. Maybe he still was too young and immature. But he liked the thought of being well educated on literature. So he tried.

'I enjoy them.' he claimed. 'I don't really like those immature adventure books anymore.' _or the people who read them_.

Mariah looked down at her watch and stood up. 'Well, there's an Indiana Jones film on now, I'm going to go down and watch it. I guess you wont join...?' The was some sadness in her voice. But Ray didn't budge.

'No, not in the mood.'

'Okay.'

x -

Max and Alan were sitting on the park bench and listening to crappy audio quality music from Alan's cellphone. A practice they usually called 'chilling'. Which practically meant doing absolutely nothing, but being lazy. They enjoyed it. No obligations. No one bothering them. Life was good when you were just 'chilling'. They were also holding a light conversation, as usual.

'So, your Mom was pretty mad?' Alan remarked.

Max nodded. 'Yea, went nuts. But that's how she is. She always goes nuts.' He sighted. 'I can't believe I have to live with her. That will suck so badly.'

Max had been everything but excited about the new 'plan' Judy had proposed to 'straighten out his life'. She had pretty much ordered him to come live with her so she could control what he was spending his life doing and the people he was associating with. She had also taken the liberty of enrolling him into the local school. From what she said it was a nice, 'proper' town with clean-cut people. From what Max had heard from everyone he hung out with, it was a boring backwater with stuck-up, posh people, that had a stick up their ass, huge enough to slay a baseball bat. Not the kind of place Max would ever fit in. The streets of his neighbourhood reaked of piss and alcohol. There were violent youth gangs and sketchy people. Neo nazis and drug dealers. Grafity and other vandalism. It was a true shithole, but it was also his home. This was were he felt comfortable. He always knew what to expect.

Alan gave him a sad smile. 'I know this sounds corny and all, and I don't want to get mushy, but you're my best buddy.'

Alan broke out into loud laughter to cover up his heartfelt emotions.

'Yea, you're mine too.' Max told him. He was being completely serious. And he blushed.

Not like Alan or Max didn't already know. They had been best friends since they were kids. They just rarely expressed it. Now was an exception.

'I'll miss you man.'

Max nodded. But he didn't want the mood to get even more depressing, so he put on a bitter smile and gently boxed Alan in the sides. Time to act like a tough guy again.

'Man up, we have community service together, We'll see each other every week, for some fun.'

Alan grinned. 'Yea, great fun.' he said sarcastically.

Max smirked back. This was how their emotional conversations always ended. They didn't like admitting their feelings. They would show it through actions, like real tough guys did. Actions were worth a lot more than words. Words were for pansies and girls.

- x -

The Kon household was hosting a barbercue. Together with their friends, the Hiwataris. Mrs Kon and Mrs Hiwatari had been old friends since elementary school. Their husbands befriended each other consequently. They too had once attended the same school. They might have been in different friends groups but they had all grown up together. For the 9 years of high school they had known the same teachers, same people, same stories, same scandals. That's how it was if you grew up in a small town. Even for Ray. He walked into school and would see a bunch of people he had known half his life. Or even longer if they had been to the same elementary school as him. Or kindergarten. There were some people he had known ever since he was a baby. And he'd probably know them for the rest of his life. But that wasn't a good thing in his opinion. He'd be completely content, not seeing most of his classmates ever again. Kai Hiwatari was one of them. Ever since they were kids, their parents had assumed they had to get along. So every damn time they had one of these lame barbercues, Kai and Ray sat next to each other on the beer bench, saying the usual 'So, how's life?' 'Good.' 'Yea, same' before they could officially ignore each other and worthlessly eat their meals. It was slightly different as kids. They would play in the sandpit. There was only one digger, that they regularly fought over. Their parents made them share, which usually ended up with Kai taking it and throwing sand at Ray, and then Ray crying. Not very good memories. Of course, they had long grown out of the age of playing with toys. But Ray still had a grudge towards Kai. Not like he was sore about the digger, but if one grows up disliking a person for that many years, it is hard to change old habits. Not like Kai put much effort into making him like him anyways. They were fine being grumpy to each other. That's how it had always been and that, no doubt in their minds, it's how it would always be.

Mariah usually had one or two friends over with her. They were standing by the bushes, giggling and talking about pretty much everything in the world, as long as it was the unintelligent and fun stuff. They were having a good time.

Kai however, was currently bored out of his mind and decided to take advantage of the fact that he was sitting right next to the big styrofoam cooling box, by drinking up one beer after the other. Which each new bottle, Kai chugged, Ray grabbed one as well, He was equally bored and drinking at the same speed, hoping that it would make the event a little less agonising.

Turning 16 certainly had its advantages. They were now officially legal to drink beer and wine. And that they did during those grill parties. Made them a little more tolerable. It also made both guys slightly more talkative. Only slightly though. Kai hadn't given him the usual 'how are you' earlier. And he hadn't replied when Ray asked him that either. Something was off.

'So why exactly are you giving me the silent treatment? Not like it makes much of a difference to normal, but I'm curious.' he asked.

'You know why.' Kai replied, giving him an angry look.

'No, I don't.' Ray countered in confusion.

'Think!'

There was only one thing that he possibly suspected. 'Is this about me spying on you the other day?'

'Wait, you were spying?'

Ray frantically denied. 'No, I wasn't!'

Kai rolled his eyes. 'Well, it doesn't matter. That's not it. Think harder.'

Ray did. But nothing came to mind. He hadn't even seen Kai around much. He never did in summer. Only for the barbercues, and the last one was a while back. Other than that, just in town occasionally, but it wasn't like they'd approach each other and talk. Finally he just concluded that Kai was either being a sissy about something minor or there was some sort of misunderstanding. But he couldn't be bothered to further argue with someone who wouldn't even tell him what they were arguing about.

'I haven't done anything.'

'Exactly.'

Ray was confused again. 'What was I supposed to do?'

'You know.'

'No, I don't!'

A sauber Kai might have realised that maybe Ray, in fact, really didn't know. But he wasn't thinking logically anymore. His anger was clouding up his mind. Ray wasn't in the mood for a half drunken argument either. So pouted and walked away, towards the grill, to get another sausage. He wasn't really hungry. He wanted to get away from Kai's accusations and also figured that with another wiener in his stomach, maybe the alcohol would wear off a little. He sat down on the grass, rather than back next to Kai. Stupid Kai. Why did he always try to get on his nerves?

X -

Because neither Max nor his Dad owned a suitcase, Judy had to bring one and hence strictly watched Max as he packed up his necessities. It was a rather awkward process. Both his mother and father were standing above him, Judy watching the things he packed like a hawk it's prey.

'You can't pack that.' She said as Max picked up a pair of Jeans. 'They have holes in them.'

'They're supposed to.' Max told her. 'That's what's in fashion.'

'Why do you buy him pants with holes in them?' Judy then hissed at his Dad.

Max father shrugged. He was way more chill than his mother. Much 'cooler' too.

'Like he said, it's the style.'

'Only a moron like you would spend good money on ripped clothing. You can't even donate these. Not even hobos wouldn't wear them.'

Max' Dad just smiled. 'Calm down, Judy. It's just pants. Nothing to get that worked up about.'

'With that outlook on things, no wonder he got arrested. Did you ever teach him discipline?' Before her ex-husband even had a chance to answer, she discovered another piece of clothing she disapproved of.

'Don't even think about packing that shirt!'

Granted the shirt had a couple of cursewords on it. Max was still annoyed.

'Oh shut it, Mom. Not like I want to live with you. So I wont live by your rules either.'

Judy raised her finger. 'Don't even dare to speak to me in that tone, young man! I will teach you some respect! And believe me, you _will_ live by my rules.'

'And what if I don't? What are you going to do about it?'

Max was tough. No one on the streets ever told him what to do. He wouldn't let his mother boss him around.

'Max, have some respect!' His father asked him

'Sorry.'

He did listen to his father. He was like a friend to him, but also someone he could look up to. Someone he could trust and whose company he appreciated. _Him_ he respected. Not his bossy mother though.

'How about you let me have a talk with him.' he suggested to Judy.

She wasn't fond of the idea at all, but finally decided to release her arms from their angry, crossed position and threw her hands in the air in indifference.

'Fine, good luck with this brat.'

Then she angrily stepped out of the room.

Max' father sat down on the floor next to him and gave him a sad smile. 'I love you son, you know that. I just want your best. Judy can offer that to you.' he put his arm around his son. 'She has a nice apartment, you know. The rooms are really light and welcoming. Not as run down as this place. There's no moldy water damage patches, no brittle walls, no broken tiles in the bathroom, there's hot water all day, every day, no 50 year old carpet or 80's wallpaper, and the elevator in the building actually works. It's a really nice place.'

Max leaned his head on his father's shoulder. 'Well, that's all nice, but it doesn't matter. I like it here. I don't want to live with her. She's nuts.'

'She's just passionate. She'll calm down. I know she can be rather overwhelming, but she'll be at work most of the time anyways. And you'll have your room. And you know, in case you need a break, you can always come to me. You're always welcome. It's not that far. Just a train trip away.'

Max sighed. 'I still don't want to go.'

It was a sad moment for his father, as well. He couldn't hide it, even if he did try his best to convince Max. They were too close.

'I don't really want to have to let you go either.' he admitted. 'But it's for your best.'

'Can't we just come up with some compromise. Like I promise to improve my grades and study everyday. To make Mom happy until she's calmed down a little.' Max suggested.

'This isn't about making your mother happy.

Max crossed his arms in annoyance. 'So far, it has been.'

'No max, we're doing it for you. You know, nobody likes moving, but who knows, you might even like the town once you get there.

'Maybe.' Max chewed his lip. 'But it's filled with stuck-up, posh pricks, so I doubt it.'

He had a tendency to get pessimistic in situations he did not want to be optimistic about. Max could be very smiley and enthusiastic, motivating the people around him, but only if he wanted to be. Now he didn't. Now he wanted to be moody and cranky.

'Max, please make an effort.' his father begged him. 'I want you to be able to live a successful life. You know that with the current job market it will be hard to get a job now that you have a track record. At least with an Abitur Diploma they aren't as likely to check.'

'I know.' He did. A car shop, that had initially accepted him, had then changed their mind after receiving his criminal record. 'I hate this shit.'

x -

**So what did Ray not do, and will max be able to handle the new town? You'll find out in 2 weeks :)**


	3. Damsel in distress

**I'm really sorry this took so long. I was sure I would keep my promise this time, but there was an incident in the family. I don't want to get into too much detail, but it made be re-think my priorities. Writing wasn't one of them. It took me a long time to get back into it.**

**Anyways, enjoy this chapter.**

-xxx-

1 month earlier:

Just another barbecue between friends. At the Hiwatari's allotment garden this time. Their house was lacking a garden, hence the family had bought a small garden plot a little outside of the village. Ray hated going there. The plot was in the middle of a larger allotment area, with about 20 other gardens. They were usually occupied by really redneck campers with superiority complexes over their porcelain dwarves guarding their vegetables or obnoxious city folks who had come there for the 'peace', which didn't stop them from turning up the radio as loud as possible on the most ghetto channel they could find, so they had a sound track to accompany their binge drinking. Another thing that sucked about it that the plots were far away enough to be reached by car. So he couldn't just leave without walking home for an hour. Sometimes he did though. When it got too boring. Or awkward. His parents loved bringing up the most uncomfortable topics in the presence of Kai and his parents. It was especially bad if Mariah brought her friends from school. There was stuff he didn't want his classmates to know. This time Mariah didn't even attend though. Kai had brought a friend however. His one friend rather. His name was Wyatt. Wyatt had transferred to their school a few years back. He used to go to one of those strange alternative schools, that didn't do grades or something weird like that. Ray didn't know why exactly he had transferred though. Wyatt was a strange one. He was rather friendly to everyone. And social too. People had liked him, they had welcomed him. But the only person he had been interested in befriending had been Kai. In fact he had clung on to him like a lost puppy, desperately craving the attention. It ended as one of those situations in which someone had become a friend just by default for sticking around too long. Soon everybody else lost interest in him and he became just another oddball in the class. While being an outcast hurt Ray, Wyatt went about it in indifference. Nobody really knew much about him, other than Kai maybe. Ray had heard some things, but they were rather basic. He lived with his mother. Quite a hippie apparently, who owned an organic foods and ointments store. He didn't have a Dad. Ray didn't know why though.

It was rather unusual for Kai to bring a guest along, in fact, this was the first time.

It actually made Ray feel a little left out, not like he'd ever admit it. Despite their popular dislike for each other, interacting with Kai was better than not interacting with anyone at all. Ray just felt plain stupid sitting at the table not doing anything. In a strange section of his brain he wished Kai had given him a 'warning' in advance, so that he could at least have brought a book to read. But of course he wouldn't ever tell him. That sounded needy after all.

Ray had already spaced out in boredom when suddenly Wyatt sat down next to him. He gave him a wide and happy smile.

'Do you mind me sitting here?'

Ray was somewhat buffed, but he tried to play it cool, though he still sounded a little desperate. 'Of course I don't, it's free. Go ahead!'

Wyatt's face lit up as if he'd told him something, that was comparably a lot better.

'Awesome.'

It was the first time he could recall seeing Wyatt out of the school dresscode. Not like it was particularly strict, but it still gave off an entirely different impression when a person was wearing something they had chosen freely. He was dressed in sweat pants and a plain green cotton shirt. A lot less formal than at school. He didn't seem as intimidating either now. Not like Wyatt in particular was intimidating. All people from school were.

'So, how have your holidays been so far?' Wyatt asked.

'Decent.' Ray replied.

'You don't sound too excited.'

'I'm not.' Ray replied, he was rather annoyed. He hated it when people said stuff like that. His holidays were shitty enough, he didn't need other's stupid comments.

'I'm not either.' Wyatt admitted.

This was odd.

'Aren't you and Kai doing a bunch of fun stuff?' Ray asked. Kai always made it sound like they were.

'We've been having some issues lately.' Wyatt said. His voice was rather bitter.

Ray had never seen Wyatt angry, but his voice had a certain sharpness to it, he could sense the tension. So that was why Wyatt was talking to him rather than Kai.

'What's been happening?'

Wyatt inhaled and exhaled deeply. 'Just being a prick really.' He told him after he had calmed down a little.

If there was something Ray knew about him it was that he was loyal, very loyal. Ray was curious but hadn't expected to get anything out of Wyatt anyways, so he decided to change the topic, no point in wasting his social contact of the week on that if he wouldn't give in anyways.

But he did. Despite all expectations.

'Kai is having one of his superiority trips again. It's pretty annoying. He told me to stop following him around and I should go bother someone else. Why did he even invite me then, I wonder.'

'What? He invited you, it should be his responsibility to entertain you. Who else should you be hanging out with? His parents?' Ray was shocked. If he had a friend, he wouldn't dare treating him with such disrespect.

'Exactly. It's awkward.' Wyatt felt more comfortable now, that he had someone agreeing with his opinion.

'Does he do that a lot?'

'Yea, especially during sleepovers and stuff.' He sighed. 'Though I am pretty damn glad you were around this time. You have no idea.' he gave Ray his widest smile. So that's why he had been so happy to see him earlier.

Ray had never thought of Kai particularly highly, but he had always seemed like the loyal type. And like he did care a great deal about his 'best buddie'. Guess not.

'What a dick.' Ray declared.

Wyatt laughed. 'Nah, he's not that bad.'

'He is, he ditched you.'

Wyatt shrugged. It seemed as if he kind of agreed with Ray but didn't really want to say so. Saying it made it real after all, and Wyatt liked being in his dreamy little bubble. 'Say, is there any escape from here?'

The word escape put Ray in a good mood again. Even if there wasn't any. 'unfortunately not. It's too far to walk to town, that's why I hate this place. Although there is this lake nearby. I go there sometimes if I need a break for a couple of hours.'

'That sounds good.' Wyatt said.

'Yea, better than nothing.' Ray brushed it off, he didn't want to sound too emotional about it.

Wyatt's eyes lid up though. 'No, really, it sounds real good.'

His sincere 'confession' put Ray much more at ease. He felt rather confident introducing him to his personal sanctuary now.

'Okay then, let's get away. No need to mention it, they won't be missing us.'

'Not Kai at least.' Wyatt added bitterly.

-xxx-

present time:

Max' new room was larger than the one he'd had at his Dad's flat. A lot less personal too, though. Sure, it was a matter of time and effort. Still, he may have the time, but not the effort. He didn't want to have it. Right now, he just wanted to hate his life and feel sorry for himself. He did find himself liking the kitchen momentarily. It was rather nice. It had shiny, white tiles, a granite countertop and large windows. But he soon decided that it was too preppy, after all. He didn't like the fridge either. Mostly because of it's contents. Typical single-workaholic-woman food. Salat, fruit and "Weight-Watchers" meals. Nasty.

'You don't even own juice.' he remarked with disappointment.

'I don't drink that pre-made stuff. I always make my own with fresh carrots and celery in the blender.'

Max was not impressed. 'Ew.'

'It's good for you'

_Not the first time I've heard that today_. Somehow each time one of his parents used that sentence it was connected to something negative.

'Can we go food shopping?'

'If you're good, maybe in a few days.'

_If you're good_, that sounded like he was some sort of toddler.

'Fuck it, I'm hungry.'

'Max, I don't like you using that language.'

'Whatever.' Max turned his attention back to the fridge and pulled out a few of the "Weight-Watchers" meals. Chicken Teriyaki and Tofu Wok.

'Where are the plates?'

His mother handed him one. 'You're only supposed to eat one of those at a time.' She remarked.

'Those things are designed for anorexic women on their periods, no way one would fill me. I'm a growing man.'

'Oh really? Currently, you're acting more like a woman on her period.' Judy mocked him.

Max rolled his eyes at the nasty comment. 'So are you.'

They didn't say anything to each other for a while. Max heated the meal in the microwave, while his mother chewed on nothing but a stick of celery. While the calorie reduced "feast" was cooking, Max avoided talking further by reading the instructions and ingredients on the back of the cardboard packaging -in every language. Even though he put great effort into looking interested and busy, Judy still decided to start another conversation with him. This one was not any less negative than the previous one.

'Your hair looks horrible.'

'I like it.'

'We should get you to the hair dresser.' she decided.

'I said, that I like it.'

'There's no way you can go to school like that.'

'It's a public school, right? They've seen worse.' There had been people with Mohawks in crazy colours at his old school. Literally nobody cared about his poorly dyed mess of a blond.

'It has a strict dress code.'

'I don't care, I like being a blond.'

'That's not blond, that's orange.'

'So? Some people have naturally orange hair.'

Judy laughed mockingly. 'Believe me Max, nobody would believe that mop on your head is natural.'

Max was somewhat hurt by that comment. 'I still don't think the teachers would care.'

'Yes, but you still look like a ghetto brat. Who would want to befriend a ghetto brat?'

Maybe true. He had to admit, his mother's argument was rather worrisome. Despite hating the place, he did want to make friends. Things were even shittier without friends. So he did what he always did when he was unsure: Not say anything.

To his surprise, his mother was actually willing to compromise. 'How about this. We go to a proper salon and get it dyed blond professionally. You need a haircut anyways. Who did it the last time? Your Dad?'

'He did, actually.' Max was grinning now. 'But still, no.'

Really Max didn't mind getting rid of his stroppy mess, he just didn't want to agree with her. It was mostly damaged and icky dry anyways. And if it would make a better impression on people it was worth it. Max did act tough, but he was kind of a softie behind that hard shell. He had been rather worried about befriending people. People from Frankfurt had told him 'village idiots' liked to stick to their own groups. That they didn't like newbies. It did make sense. City people were more open minded, and even he had not really made new friends since 5th grade. By the time they were 16, everyone already had their group. No way someone who had just moved to town would compare to a childhood friend one had know for half one's life. It would be tough and he was dreading it. He didn't even know how to act. Usually he would pretend to be more badass than he was, but he had a feeling that wouldn't fly as well in this posh corner of the world. He hadn't decided how to act. He probably just would on the spot that day. He had never been the type for planning anyways.

- x -

It was just another socially awkward day for Ray. He was bored, so he initially decided to work out. Then he decided pumping weights was even more boring so he sat down in front of the telly instead and watched a couple of hours of staged reality TV. After having watched an entire episode of what appeared to be a German copy of 'Jersey Shore' he decided he couldn't do this to his brain after all and went for a walk instead. He did not exactly have any specific destination in mind, so half an hour of strolling brought him to a convenience store. He figured he might as well get a slush to make up for the burnt calories.

There was only one other person in the store, minus the cranky owner. It was a strange looking kid with orange hair, wearing a beanie and a skull print hoodie, that had unintentional holes in a few places. He looked a little sketchy for Ray's standards, so he decided to avoid him as good as possible and went and awkwardly longer path between the rows to get to the slush machine. The kid looked up from his newspaper, but decided Ray wasn't interesting enough to be watched any further.

_I was probably stamped 'not mug-worthy' _Ray thought in his predjudiced way. He decided to ignore the guy too and filled up a cup with a rasberry slush and paid it at the register. He had just stepped out of the store as he heard an all to familiar voice.

'A pink slushi? Oh Konny, where did your masculinity go?'

It was the sarcastic voice of Kai Hiwatari.

'Very funny.' Ray hissed.

Kai had been an even bigger dick to him ever since he had started to act mad for that thing he blamed him for, that Ray still couldn't pinpoint. He just assumed that it was something minor and that Kai was just being overly dramatic once again. He loved the drama after all. He nearly craved it. Ray knew from experience that Kai loved making minor situations unnecessary draggy and silly just for the sake of getting excitement into his life. Just like Ray, he was unhappy and wanted more out of it.

'So, any specific plans today?' Kai asked.

Ray gave him a suspicious look. No way Kai would just invite him to do anything together, just like that.

'Before you start getting weird thoughts. No, I do not want to hang out with you. But there might be someone else you'd like to visit.' Kai specified.

Ah, so that was the back-thought. Now it all made sense to him. 'Tell your asshole friend he can go die, for what I care. Leave me alone.'

Ray thought he knew what Kai was hinting at. A few weeks back he'd had a rather intense argument with Kai's best friend. He didn't expect him to tell Kai the reason behind it, but apparently he had. Kai was getting into stuff that was none of his business. Who was he to tell Ray to crawl back and apologize? Not like it was purely Ray's fault anyways.

Kai bit his lip and balled his hands. For a moment he looked as if he was ready to smack Ray. Instead he took a deep breath and told him: 'Wow, you're the truly biggest dick I know. I would have never thought you were that low.' His voice appeared shocked and disappointed, which seemed strange. Ray could imagine him reacting pissed, but not like this. Oh well, maybe he was just a little protective of his buddy now. Was about time, though.

- x -

Max had decided to go explore his new town. It was a little bigger than he had expected. Not a total village. A small town rather. Nothing compared to Frankfurt of course. It didn't take him long to cross the entire town. He even found what might be his new school. It looked rather small and a little redneck. He walked a little further and found a convenience store. He decided to go in and browse it a little. So far it had been the only food store he'd seen. He really hoped there was another, because the sortiment was not exactly diverse. There were a couple of frozen pizzas, milk, candy and alcohol. He reminded himself to buy a pizza before he left, anything could beat that silly diet food after all. He strolled along the isles without looking for anything particular. He soon reached the magazines and pulled out a playboy. Just as he opened it however, another person entered the store. Max quickly hid the playboy out of sight and grabbed the daily issue of a boring newspaper. The articles there were mostly centered around politics and economics. Two topics Max could not care less about. He decided to watch the other client instead. He appeared to be a lot more interesting. It was a guy his age, dressed in a rather unattractive dark green sweater-west over his short sleeved orange polo shirt. _What is it with rich people and bad colour combinations?_ Max thought, shaking his head. But that wasn't even the worst part. The guy was also walking around publicly, wearing a fanny pack. Yes, a fanny pack. Something one would normally just see middle-aged, fat tourists wear. He didn't look like a tourist though, he was lacking the obnoxious camera on a textile strap around his neck. He also wasn't middle aged or fat. Just dorky, but not even in the 'cool' sense that was popular with hipsters right now. Just totally unfashionable.

He was fun to watch but it seemed Max was staring at him a little too obviously. The guy glanced at him briefly and Max did an exaggerated job of pretending he was really into his reading. It didn't seem like the guy had noticed anything. He filled up a plastic cup with some slushi liquid and went to the cash register to pay with coins he crammed out of his fanny pack. Then he left, -too spacey to say good-bye to the store- clerk. Not like the clerk seemed to care. Max decided to stare at him him through a window. Not like he had anything better to do anyways. Besides, people watching was always fun. The guy ended up encountering another guy. This one, also rather unfashionable, was dressed in a turtle neck. _What is it with rich people and uncool clothing items?_ Maybe they figured they were too rich to have to worry about how they looked. There wasn't that need of being a gold digger after all. The two were fighting about something, resulting both of them to storm off into different directions. One of them into the store. By now Max had given up on the news paper and pulled out the playboy again. What were the odds of the guy coming in his direction after all?

The odds may have been sparse, but not in his favour. It was exactly where the guy was headed. He now stood right next to Max and pulled random magazines off the shelf. Max tried to pretend he was too engaged in obsessively staring at the nude pic of a tennis player, to avoid eye contact, but he was rather obviously tense about it. It was not until the guy grabbed another copy of the playboy that Max could ease up. The guy gave him a cheeky grin. 'Is it any good?'

Max grinned back. 'Well, some nice pics, it's a pretty good issue but I wish they would cut down on the articles, not like anyone buys the playboy to read it anyways.'

The guy laughed. Max found him to be rather sympathic. The first person he had encountered in this town whom he did no longer feel a dislike for. So he dared to get a little cheeky.

'You'll be reading a lot there.' he said, pointing at all the mags the guy had under his arm.

'My friend is at the hospital. Despite all stereotypes, we did not see a single hot nurse, so I think he needs this to cheer up a little.' The guy smirked before he waved his hand at Max. 'Well see ya. Thanks for the recommendation.'

Max had hoped the guy would stay to talk, but of course that didn't happen. Why should it? Max may be lonely in this town, but not the others. Finding friends would be hard if no one was keen on holding a conversation with him.


	4. Making new Friends

**Hello, **

**I hope the writing style with the flashbacks isn't too confusing. Let me know if you want me to put it in italics. I haven't done it so far because reading large blocks in italics get's kinda annoying, but if it helps, I'll do it. Oh, and the 1st chapter takes place before everything else (including the Ray-Wyatt parts). **

**Happy Reading, hope you enjoy :) **

_1 month prior..._

'Back at my old school, my teacher arranged a 'camping in the wild' weekend here. We were supposed to spend a night outside to connect us closer to nature or something cheesy like that. The trip sucked, but not because of its location. I actually like this lake.' Wyatt took his sweatshirt off and stretched his naked arms out. 'The sun feels good.'

Ray nodded. 'Yes, I like it here too. It's a good place to come to clear your thoughts and be alone without feeling lonely.'

Wyatt sat down in the sand. His knees were angled and he rested his chin on top of them. 'I don't like being alone. Sometimes I do, but lately it's been too often.'

Ray sat down next to him. 'Because of the Kai thing?'

Wyatt bit his lip, then he stretched out his arms again, leaned back and let his back drop into the sand. After that random acrobatic session he looked back up at Ray from below and moved his head slightly to nod.

Ray got the hint. 'We don't have to talk about it.'

Wyatt smiled in response.

'Why did you change schools actually?'

'Because the old one was a joke. There was the whole connecting us with the wild crap, all the teachers were obnoxiously left-wing and the cafeteria food was strictly vegan. It's like they were trying to raise little hippies.'

'They must have been a pretty awful bunch if you prefer the losers at our school.'

'Yeah, our school sucks, but it could be worse.'

Wyatt sat back up and now seemed to be fiddling in his pants' pockets. Ray watched him somewhat perplexed, before he decided to ask.

'What are you looking for?'

His question was answered when Wyatt pulled a small glass pipe and a ziplock bag of weed out of his pocket.

Ray raised an eyebrow. 'You know my Dad's a cop, right?'

'Yeah, that's why I wanted to get out of his range before smoking. It would be very disrespectful...' he said in a casual tone.

'Alright then.' Ray replied, and shrugged. Wyatt packed his pipe and lit it. He inhaled, sucking the smoke into his lungs, and held it there for a few seconds before exhaling.

He was being watched by Ray's sceptical eyes.

'You know, the least you can do is offer me some.'

'You want to smoke weed?' Wyatt asked perplexed. 'Never pictured you as the type.'

'I can't really do drugs if nobody ever offers them to me, can I?'

Wyatt laughed and handed him the pipe. 'Excuse my manners.'

So then Ray Kon smoked weed for the first time. Even though Wyatt had already hit most of the bowl, Ray's first load of pot smoke resulted in a crazy coughing fit. There was a very uncomfortable, scratchy feeling in his throat. Wyatt patted his back.

'Relax your lungs. Here, take a drink.'

Wyatt, like a true hippie, always carried his drinking bottle of water with him. Lucky for Ray. The water did wonders and allowed his lungs to stop coughing.

'How can you do this? I don't feel good, my throat hurts.'

'Years of practice.'

'Years? Is the stuff really that good?'

'Depends on the person. To me, its good. Makes me less neurotic.'

Something that made him less neurotic, that actually sounded very appealing to Ray.

He could feel the weed have an effect soon after, his gums started tingling, and his cheeks got hot. He took his sandals off to feel the sand between his toes. He reached around and found a pebble stone, it was so perfectly rounded and polished. He looked up, the sun was setting over the fine forest, and it's red-tinted shine was being reflected by the water of the lake.

'Wow, nature is so beautiful.' Ray finally said.

'Looks like the pot is working.' Wyatt replied laughing.

'I'm no longer surprised you're such a hippie after smoking this stuff.'

'Me, a hippie?' Wyatt asked in shock.

Ray nodded. 'Well yeah, you eat tofu, you're always stoned, and you make tea from leaves of the random shrubs that grow around school.'

'Point taken. But I'm no hippie, I hate those retards. Say they want to change the world but all they do is whine.'

Ray decided to tease him. Actually, you're right. You never claimed you wanted to change the world, you went straight to whining.'

Wyatt blushed and giggled.

Surprising to Ray, he found the boy to be a lot more interesting than he first expected. And a lot less bitter and anal than Kai. Why had he never bothered to talk to him before? And he wasn't just a naive hippie either. That was another good sign.

'To be honest, I was always a little jealous of the hippie's hair. If I were to grow mine out like that, it would just look tacky. Like some Redneck.' Ray confessed.

Wyatt looked at him for a little while. 'I think you could pull it off.' he concluded in the end.

'Oh?' Ray brushed his hands through his short bangs. He had only meant it as joke, but Wyatt's words had him thinking. 'It would certainly be badass. Like Rambo!'

'Yeah, that's my favourite movie.'

'Really? Mine too!'

Wyatt was the first person he admitted liking that movie to. It had been a guilty pleasure of his, that he was too embarrassed to like. It was all guns and violence after all. In fact, that's what he liked about it. Wyatt interrupted his thoughts:

'You should go for it. Get looking like Rambo!'

'That style's a little aged don't you think?'

'It's fucking Rambo, who cares?

Ray blushed and chuckled. He liked the idea. 'I'd need to work out some more too. Get ripped. And what about that awkward in-between-growth phase that has it looking like a mullet? Not sure I'm cool enough for that.'

Wyatt giggled. 'Well you'll just need to pack on the muscles before it gets there. Then nobody dares to mock you.'

-x-

_Present time..._

Ray was somewhat anxious about his first day of classes. Not just did year 11 feel all mature. He was a senior now, which was sweet. But more than feeling embarrassingly proud about being older, he was actually dreading attending. There was a person he did not want to see. Thinking about it, he did not really want to see anyone, but this one person in particular. Ray and Wyatt were not friends any more. It had started off very promising but thing had gone... bad. Ray didn't like thinking about it and he certainly did not want to deal with any awkwardness. He'd be forced to now. Kai would probably be so smug. Really it was quite awkward that he knew in the first place.

Ray shuddered. It would suck. This day would be one he would want to cross out of his memory.

'Maybe, if we have new people, you could make friends with them.' Mariah suggested during breakfast.

'Better than making friends with anyone from class, as I learnt recently...' Ray mumbled.

'Have you talked to him at all?' she asked him in a more serious tone.

'Not once.'

'Why didn't you contact him?'

'Why didn't he contact me?'

'Aren't you curious to hear his explanation?'

'It wouldn't change anything.' he grumbled. 'Listen, Sis, I'm too tired to have this conversation. My plan for now is to just avoid him, when I see him and hope he wont approach me either.'

'Yea... that will sure get you far.' she said, rolling her eyes.

'There's nowhere I want this to go.'

Mariah covered her mouth and yawned. 'Whatever you think is smart, I personally think you should find closure before you turn into a commitment phobic with trust issues or something equally as dramatic as that.'

'I have closure. I closed it off weeks ago.'

She shrugged. He knew she didn't believe him on what he said, but he was a guy, he wouldn't start over-analysing things like girls did. He had closed it off the guy way and that would suffice. Or so he thought...

-x-

Ray didn't bother arriving at school early to ensure a good seating spot in the classroom. There wasn't anyone he wanted to sit next to anyway. He got there when almost everyone was seated and the teacher was about to start class. He spotted his family friend/prick Kai rejecting some poor new kid for a seat he appeared to be reserving. For Wyatt probably. In a strange urge to express his distaste, Ray decided to sit down in the empty seat next to Kai, who in response, gave him a perplexed look.

'What the hell? That seat's not for you?'

Ray laughed. 'Never would have guessed.'

Kai gave him another suspicious and confused look but decided to shrug it off.

'Fine, you can sit here until Wyatt's back.'

'Back?' Now it was up to Ray to look around and be confused. 'Where is he anyway?'

Kai did not have a chance to respond. The teacher had started class.

'Good Morning, Year 11, I hope you all used your summer to the fullest and will hence restrain from showing up to campus intoxicated with substances that should not legally be consumed. And now that most of you are at the legal age for alcohol consumption, that does not mean you have to drink before 8am, or during school for that matter. Also, your breaks are there to catch some fresh air and have your lunch, you don't have to use it to smoke pot because it happens to be conveniently long enough. Also, don't get pregnant, don't die and if I catch you cheating on my tests you will get a 0. What is the difference between a 0 and an F you wonder? An F might still be 50%! You're not even that lucky.'

The teacher continued to go on an angry rave but Ray had already spaced out. Typical 'welcome back speech', composed of more threats and lists of things one shouldn't be doing than anything remotely welcoming. He had gotten quite bored over the past few days so he had been looking forwards to having something to do, even if it was class. That anticipation faded before the teacher was done with his speech. Ray was craving the holidays again. Apart from the introductory speech, the teacher also didn't waste any time easing the students into the new year. He started teaching Maths immediately. And, as usual, Ray spaced out immediately. Maths was not exactly his favourite subject. He didn't have a favourite. All sucked. But some sucked more than others.

He had Ethics after. It was the school's alternative to Christian Religion class for the students who were not. With his father being Chinese, he obviously didn't grow up a catholic. He did not mind Ethics too much, it was like an easy History class on World Religions. The only annoying thing about it was that it was always located at some shitty location that was hard to find. At the end of the first period, the majority of students either remained in the class room to participate in the Protestant class, or went next door to attend the Catholic class. There were not that many people left who had to go to the Ethics room. And the people who were supposed to go, decided they also had enough of school for the day and took advantage of now, as seniors, legally being allowed to skip class.

'So it's up to me to search for it alone.' he moaned. He resigned to his fate and was about to walk off, when a shy voice stopped him.

'Heh, do you know where E-35i is?'

Ray turned around. It was the new kid. A rather short boy, with clean cut, side parted blonde hair, dressed in what looked like rather uncomfortable, tidy clothes.

'I don't. But that's where I'm headed as well. It tends to be in the most absurd place one can possibly find. A different one each year. This school does not exactly value it's multicultural student body.'

The boy laughed. 'That's how it always is.'

Ray nodded. 'I'm Ray by the way.'

'Max.'

'Cool, nice to meet you Max.'

Max smiled. 'Yes, nice to meet you too, you're the first person to actually talk to me properly. I know that nobody really wants to deal with the new kid, but this is just ridiculous. No offence, but your class is full of snobs.'

'That's not just because you're new. To be honest, I can't stand half of them. The other half I full on hate.'

Max laughed in response, which made Ray quite happy. Nobody really laughed at his bad jokes.

'Good thing we're both heathens then.' Max said. 'What's your story?' he inquired.

'Both my parents belonged to different religions, so they figured it would be less dramatic like this. Not like either of them have set a foot in a temple or church since childhood anyway.' Ray explained.

Max nodded. 'Same here.'

They set out on their quest for the Ethics classroom. It was a rather long search, giving them both a chance to talk and find out more about each other. Ray learnt that Max had just moved in with his mother, a rather anal engineer with high expectations. He did not seem to like it much, mostly naming his mother being a bitch as the reason for that. He had moved from the city. His father he did like. The city too. Their village not so much. All his friends were in the city, and he appeared to have had a good life there. It didn't take long for Ray to figure out that Max did not want to be where he was.

'Why didn't stay with your father?'

Max sighed. 'Mother's orders.'

'Oh. I see.'

Ray felt like he was obligated to stick up for his home town. Living on the countryside isn't that bad. I like it actually.' Ray confessed.

'But there's not even a proper grocery store.'

'The gas station has a small one. And there's a News Agent that sells Snacks and Kebabs. And if you walk across the fields a little there's a deli. That's pretty good for a town this size.'

'I'm sorry, but that still sucks.'

'You'll get used to it. It's really not that bad.'

Max was a little sceptic. He shrugged. All he could do now was hope that this guy was right. At least from talking to him, it didn't seem like countryside people were such rednecks after all. Ray seemed like a normal person.

'What do you folks do for fun here?'

'Drugs.'

These country folks sure were a lot more straight forwards than Max expected... But Ray couldn't keep a straight face for long, he soon broke into laughter.

'It was a joke. Although its actually true for most of our classmates.'

'Talking about drugs, so you do have any nightclubs here?'

'One in the town nearby. But I never go there. It's full of people from school, which makes sense, no one from outside would go to that shitty place.'

'How do you meet people from outside?'

'Not at all, that's the bad thing, it's a little bit like an incest community, it seems like everyone has already made out with everyone.'

'Including you?' Max asked.

Ray stalled momentarily, then played it cool. 'I tend to stay out of that stuff. But my sister loves to gossip, so I'm usually first to hear. Even before some of the girls. Imagine that!'

Max laughed again. Ray was starting to like him, it was nice to have someone who appreciated his jokes. He didn't think he would ever find someone who shared his sense of humour after Wyatt.

'You know what, you're a cool guy, Ray.'

That surprised him. Ray had not ever been told that. He had feared that his eternal pessimism and misanthrope would scare Max off.

-x-

They eventually found the classroom, it was in the basement of the 5th and 6th grader building; next to the boiler room and the power generator. The Ethics class passed rather uneventful. There was the usual speech on how it was all going to get harder, followed by rambling about the teacher's personal life: how she had gotten a divorce, how expensive rent had become and how she hated carrying IKEA furniture without male help. After that thrilling class period had finished, Max could finally go home. Good thing school was only 2 periods long on the first day of classes. A surprisingly kind way to ease the students back into torture.

'Wanna hang out a little after class? Maybe go to that Kebab stand I told you about? Believe me, you don't want to miss out on the most exciting place this village has to offer.' Ray suggested with a kind smile on his face. Max wanted to go, he really did, he was happy to have found someone he could talk to that well, but he knew it wouldn't fly with his mother.

'I'm sorry, but I can't, my mother said she'd pick me up from school today.'

'Ah, that's nice of her. Maybe some other time then?' Ray asked, his voice sounded slightly discouraged.

Max put on a smile and internally cursed his everything-but-nice control-freak of a parent. 'Yes, for sure!'

'Cool, see you tomorrow then.'

'Yea, bye.'

Ray waved and walked off. Max sighed. His mother wanted to make sure he was not up to anything bad, and planned on doing this by driving and picking him up daily. There was nothing kind about it. Her ideology was, the less time he spent outside of her view, the better. He just hoped this wasn't a permanent thing. Getting chauffeured by a parent like that was borderline humiliating.


End file.
